Alternator pulley angled in? Not sure how to adjust this

[procomsignathid]

Hey all, I was screwing around under the hood (fan belt felt loose, so I tightened it), and noticed that the pulley on the alternator seems canted inwards, such that the pulley is not in-plane with the others. At least, I think that's what I'm seeing. Here's a vid:



It looks as though it is attached via a large bolt underneath the alternator to a cast-iron bracket (the pivot point), and of course by the adjustment bolt up-top. I would think to adjust the angle inwards/outwards, it would take banging on the main bracket underneath (sounds a bit sketchy, especially given it's a cast part).

Am I missing something here on the adjustment side of things, or is this even an issue and Im over-thinkin it? Re: tightening the belt, I tightened it until I could only rotate it 90-degrees or so with my hand (between the water pump and alternator), as prior I could nearly rotate it nearly twice that much. If I've goofed on that front I'd love to know it as well.

Thank you all!

 

[Mr. Green]

Use a level or angle to check for planar. Sight can be deceiving since it appears the belt is not trying to ride up.

 

[bhsdriller]

Maybe a bit but if the belt isn't coming off or no other issues i'd leave it

 

[procomsignathid]

Appreciate it, ill check w a level. Belt isnt riding up though so it may be fine

 

[anothernz45]

Can you run a shorter belt and get rid of that adjuster extender? They crack if they're flapping around fully out. Wouldn't worry about a little misalignment, could try a new bottom bolt.
Also, all my 2fs had the alternator on the other side of the block, but we didn't run much else off the crank.

 

[procomsignathid]

@anothernz45 Thank you for the suggestion on shortening the belt, that led to me finding the issue(s) with the odd angle!

Picked up a replacement (proper sized) belt from NAPA so I could ditch that extender. While I was at it, I checked the lower bolt. Found three issues in the process!

• The adjustment bracket I have was at some point modified (cut so its shorter on the a angled/non-adjustment part), so it now interferes with the alternator when installed normally. Im now trying to source a replacement adjustment bracket (looking for a ‘79 because I like the additional tensioning hardware). In the mean time I am using the extender on the mounting bracket side so the adjuster bracket properly clears the alternator.
• The wiring harness had been cut short so it no longer reached the alternator in the correct position. Additionally, the lead from the voltage regulator was so poorly spliced near the alternator that there were only 3-5 strands of copper left keeping the poorly twisted/taped connection intact. That would have been fun to t-shoot after it failed. I assume the poor splice was a result of shortening the harness there, and is unfortunately consistent with the wiring mods Ive slowly been stamping out in this rig.
• An incorrect cone bushing was used on the lower bolt, which had about 1/16” play between the inside of the cone bushing and outside of the bolt, leading to nearly 1/8” of forward-to-back slop when the alternator was mounted.

I found a small sleeve in the parts bin that I could insert between the cone bushing and bolt, and that eliminated the slop. Pulley is no longer angled! If anyone knows the correct cone bushing to use Ill pick one up when I replace the adjustment bracket.

I then properly repaired the harness to fix the too short/bad splice issues (solder + heat-shrink + loom wrap).

I wonder why restoration shops dont want to touch the Columbian trucks

 

[charliemeyer007]

Its really hard to do field repairs correctly with no proper parts or tools while dodging the cartel.

Look at cars in Cuba - those mechanics and those guys in Pakitstan can fix anything.

I sort of have a deaf ear for folks that buy things with known problems. Take the Demonrats and Republicons for example, 2 sides of the same corrupt coin - bankrupting America both morally and financially.

 

[procomsignathid]

I definitely chuckled at the thought of the previous owners of this rig trying to avoid the cartel while doing bush repairs . That said, my friends are convinced it was used as part of daily cartel operations... ha

Either way, you bring up a solid point... Although I complain about the nature of repairs, the fact remains the truck was running, so I guess it's not stupid if it works

That said, I do feel a bit better knowing that if this fan belt ever breaks on me, I can pick one up at the parts store and not scratch my head about why it's too short...

 

[charliemeyer007]

When I was kid my dad extended the slots on the belt adjustment so it would take a wide assortment of belt length. Very handy when you are in the outback and the parts store/gas station have limited selections. I keep my old set of belts and hoses in the box under the drivers seat - I change them before they fail so they a good get home set.

My Craftsman's snow blower took exactly one specific belt only they sold $45. When the Briggs and scrap iron 5HP died after like 10 winters I put on the 6.5 HP Harbor China Pretender. While I was at it I made some engine mount shims and run a common $12 power belt from Amoron.

And then you wonder about the "engineers" that put belt drive in the oil and the water pump inside too. No dip sticks anymore, just in manglement - designed to fail!

 

[anothernz45]

Had another look at your video and see you have double pulleys on your crank and waterpump - could the alternator have been double A section belts originally?
Over here the Fs and 2Fs run a B section pulley, 5/8" wide as opposed to most everything else that run A section - transmit a lot more power at a lesser belt tension, easier on waterpump/alternator bearings.

 

[procomsignathid]

I think that extra pulley on the crank / water pump originally held the belt to the air pump (which was deleted prior to my ownership.

That said a double pulley on the alternator might make sense now… Ill need to look into that!

 

[65swb45]

The bushing in the forward lower ear is a press-fit, yet often goes missing somewhere along the way, causing the cant you had. You can cut any material of the appropriate OD and ID to sleeve it. In the field when this has come up, I have cut a piece of tin and wrapped it around the bolt until it matched the hole in the ear, pressed it into the ear, and cut it off front and back with a hacksaw. Markguyver.